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Ampersand
|largest_city = |official_languages = English, Malay, Chinese |regional_languages = |demonym = Ampersandese |government_type = Federation |ruler = Compassmaker |rulertitle = President |govthead = Hershel Greene |govttitle = Prime Minister |govtoff = Federal Chambers of Ampersand |offtitle = Legislature |govtoff2 = Supreme Court of Ampersand |offtitle2 = Judicial |govtoff3 = Prime House |offtitle3 = Executive |formation_date = April 18th, 2012 |formation_event = Foundation |formation_date2 = |formation_event2 = |formation_event3 = |formation_date4 = |formation_event4 = |formation_date5 = |formation_event5 = |disestablished_date = |disestablished_event = |national_religion = Mixed |national_animal = |area = Currently Measuring |population = 5,596,000 (est 2012) |ethnicity = Australian, Chinese, Indonesian |allies = League of Small Superpowers |currency = Ampersandese Shilling |gdpyear = |gdp = |gdppercapita = |literacy = |cctld = .xc & .au (new internet code in progress) |drivinglane = Right |dateformat = |time_zone = ( +7) |footnotes = |portal = }} This country is part of Axis Sphere. Ampersand, officially Federation of Ampersand, is a country consisting of northern , , and numerous small islands. There is no neighboring countries around its border. For at least 40,000 years, before the European settlement in the late 18th century, Ampersand was inhabited by Polynesian tribes. After discovery by Dutch in 1606, Great Britain gradually claimed eastern half of Australia as a penal colony. In subsequent decades, the British gradually explored the continent and the entire continent were established into six different Crown Colonies. On January 1st, 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. The commonwealth maintained a stable liberal democracy until . The commonwealth was disbanded when declared its independence. Christmas Island also declared independence on April 18th 2012, changing name to Ampersand. Ampersand rapidly conquered northern half of Australia, Papua New Guinea, and western Solomon Island. A developing country, Ampersand's economy is growing rapidly. Ampersand also ranks high on quality of life, education, economic freedom, and protection of civil liberties and political rights. It is a member of NNC. History Before European Settlement Human habitation of the Australian continent is estimated to have begun between 42,000 and 48,000 years ago, possibly with the migration of people by land bridges and short sea-crossings from what is now South-East Asia. These first inhabitants may have been ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians. Until European discovery and subsequent settlement, Indigenous Australians remained as hunter-gatherers, with a complex oral culture and spiritual values based on reverence for the land and a belief in the Dreamtime. The northern coasts and waters of Australia were visited sporadically by fishermen from Malay Archipelago. European Exploration & Settlement The first recorded European discovery and landfall are attributed to the Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon. The Dutch mapped the coastline of Australia and claimed it "New Holland", but didn't set up settlements. Besides the Dutch, other British sailors explored Australia. In 1770, James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast of Australia, which he named New South Wales and claimed for Great Britain. British Government soon sent a fleet of ships to establish a new penal colony in New South Wales. A camp was set up and the flag raised at Sydney Cove, Port Jackson, on 26 January 1788, the camp became the city of Sydney, which brought Western culture and ideas to Australia. Van Dieman's land, now know as Tasmania, was settled in 1803 and became a separate colony in 1825. The United Kingdom formally claimed the western half of Australia (Swan River Colony). South Australia separated itself from New South Wales in 1836, Victoria in 1851, and Queensland in 1859. The Northern Territory was founded in 1911 when it was excised from South Australia. The 3 states that separated them from NWS was declared "free provinces", but Victoria and Queensland later accepted convict transports. A campaign by the settlers of New South Wales led to the end of convict transportation to that colony; the last convict ship arrived in 1848. The indigenous population, estimated to have been between 750,000 and 1,000,000 at the time European settlement began, declined for 150 years following settlement, mainly due to infectious disease and government policies to assimilate natives to British culture. Under the policies, many Aboriginal children were removed from their families and communities. Until late 60s, Aboriginals were mistreated, but the government gradually accepted them and laws were made to protect their rights. Australian Era On 1 January 1901, six colonies, namely New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, and Western Australia, federated to establish the Commonwealth of Australia.The Federal Capital Territory (later renamed the Australian Capital Territory) was formed in 1911. While it was being built, Melbourne served as temporary seat of government until 1927. The Northern Territory was transferred from the control of the South Australian government to the federal parliament in 1911. In 1914, Australia joined Britain in fighting World War I. Australians took part in many of the major battles fought on the Western Front. Of about 416,000 who served, about 60,000 were killed and another 152,000 were wounded. Many Australians regard the defeat of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) at Gallipoli as the birth of the nation — its first major military action. Britain's constitutional ties with Australia mostly diminished in 1931, slowly disappearing until it was entirely severed in 1986. During WW2, Australia allied with USA after threat from Japan and Britain's losses in Asia. Since 1951, Australia has been a formal military ally of the US. After World War II Australia encouraged immigration from Europe and from 1970s immigration from other parts of the world was also allowed. As a result, Australia's demography, culture, and self-image were transformed. Since the 1972, there has been an increasing focus in foreign policy on ties with other nations by Pacific Ocean, while maintaining close ties with Australia's traditional allies and trading partners. Australian Civil War From this point, the history is not real-life. In late 1997, Asian Financial Crisis and Russian Financial Crisis occurred. Australia suffered hard from them as trade decreased. Soon, the Australian economy went into recession, without any promises of recovering. The citizens of Australia slowly became hostile towards the government. Fearing that they might lose jobs, citizens demonstrated to stop foreign migrations. However, the economy did not show signs of recovery. The hostility peaked when Western Australia declared independence on August 13th, 2003. The Australian government claimed that the independence of Western Australia was illegal. Thus the Australian Civil War started. Western Australia's army marched eastward, while Australia was striving hard to fend off the attacks from the rebellions. However, the defense line connecting Darwin through Alice Springs to Adelaide quickly broke up in late November. Darwin was devastated by the rebels after being sacked. Fearing that the rebels might take over and destroy the land, Northern Territories and Queensland withdrew from the war, forming Queensland Republic. With loss of confidence in the government, citizens started to flee from Australia, mainly to Europe and America. While rapidly shrinking, there was 2007 prime ministerial election. Vincent Langham, an experienced politician, was elected the Prime Minister of Australia. Facing war and bad economy, he decided to negotiate with Western Australia first. However, Western Australia refused to talk, so he then started negotiating with Queensland Republic. The civil war damaged most of the infrastructure of Australia, particularly the area surrounding Adelaide where there were most fierce battles. Soon all disintegrated except from Christmas Island. Christmas Island survived the civil war by the funds from Vietnam, as it desperately needed support from other countries to counter China. Trade started going between Christmas Island and Vietnam, which helped the government budget and the economy. After Christmas Island stabilized, the government held a referendum about what should be done. The most popular one was to conquer Australia. For the time, it went under series of improvement in infrastructure. Ampersand was founded by compassmaker on April 18, 2012, as a democratic country with The Settlement as the capital. The 1st Republic lasted from April 18 to May 7. Its economy thrived, and the citizens were having relatively low 20% tax. A constitution was planned, but was aborted when the republic was overthrown. The government had President being Compassmaker, prime minister being Michael Monsoon, and commander-in-chief being Jeffrey Whitehead. All were from the same party, Democratic Party of Ampersand. 2nd Republic lasted from May 7 to June 1. It started by Jeffrey Whitehead, unsatisfied with his job, declared a unilateral government of Ampersand. The new government successfully overthrew the older government without any casualties, and Jeffrey Whitehead became the president, prime minister, and Commander-in-chief by a secret ballot, effectively controlling executive branch of the government. During his dictatorship, martial law was declared, and many DPA members and other party members that disagreed with Whitehead was exiled, jailed, or However, massive riot in The Settlement and international pressure forced Jeffrey Whitehead to resign from the office. After Jeffrey Whitehead resigned, Michael Monsoon became the president and prime minister, and commander-in-chief aborted. However, the politics of Ampersand had been seriously deteriorated, and he could do nothing at the end of his tern. Compassmaker became the next president, with Hershel Green becoming the prime minister. Their terms are now longer from 3 months to 1 year, which is August 19, 2013. Ampersand Restoration War The Ampersand Restoration War is the first major war in the history of Ampersand. The war is currently ongoing, with a goal of gaining massive territories in Australia, Papua New Guinea, and Solomon Islands. It started in August 13. The Australia Campaign was the by far the largest campaign in Ampersand Restoration War. The Battle of Darwin was the first battle the Army of Ampersand had to go through. At first, there was no resistance in the harbor, but soon met a huge mob of armored gangs. However, the mob lacked any experience or organization, and retreated. The army then took a break, which was surprised by sudden attack by the self proclaimed "Free Army of Darwin". The army suffered sizable amount of injuries, but was able to fend off the FAD. The next day, the southern half of City of Darwin was liberated, while the FAD had a stronghold by the airport and Coconut Grove. General Sherman, the leader of the Ampersandese army, decided that they will ambush FAD by land at Lee Point. It was successful, and by the sunset, General Sherman was able to capture the leader of FAD and persuaded him to surrender. The Battle of Darwin ended in 2 days. Meanwhile, the Cocos Island went under Ampersandese administartion peacefully, with no one dead or injured. Although FAD's leader was captured and FAD retreated to nearby Palmerston, it didn't stop bothering the soldiers and the locals. When a scout of Ampersandese nationality entered Palmerston, he was shot to death, and General Sherman, enraged, declared that there would be another battle. 1 hour later, the entire Palmerston turned into battleground, annihilating at least half of FAD. The headquarters of FAD retreated further inland to Katherine. Battle of Katherine was the last battle in Northern Territories, which became the most fierce battle in Northern Territories. Ultimately, the Ampersandese troops won, but the battle was a huge blow, and the peace negotiation led to liberating most of Northern Territories in Australia, with FAD independently controlling Alice Springs, under the terms that Alice Springs is Ampersand's territory undisputed whatsoever. Later FAD changed its name to Free Northern Territories Party, becoming a non-militaristic political organization. Meanwhile, the Western Australia was relatively peacefully conquered by Ampersand for first half of the campaign, with Broome and Port Hedland easily taken over. As the army approached Perth and nearby cities, Free Army of West Australia, a military organization related to FAD, appeared and battled with Ampersandese army, causing severe injuries and some deaths. However, the conflict between two leaders in FAWA led to one of them defecting to Ampersand and the collapse of FAWA. West Australia was completely taken over by Ampersand. Queensland took more time to conquer. There was a strong opposition in almost every coastal cities and towns, temporarily blocking Ampersand's access to east coast of Australia. However, as Brisbane fell into Ampersand's control after fierce battle, the mayors of the cities yielded their independence to Ampersand and solidifying Ampersand's hold. Most part of South Australia was liberated by Ampersand, west of Spencer Gulf and north of land of strip between two non-permanent lakes, Lake Torrens and Lake Frome, with Murray River being the southmost boundary. As war exhausted Ampersand, it halted further plans to take over entire Australia, with Murray River and Darling River being the boundary between numerous Australian city states and Ampersand. Tasmania was spared from bloodshed because of it. The Australian Campaign was completed in October 2nd, 2012. The Papua New Guinea Campaign was planned with Australian Campaign and Solomon Islands Campaign. However, in order to stabilize newly conquered Australia, it is yet to start. However, the government has further idea of seizing entire island of New Guinea, Lesser Sunda Islands, and Maluku Islands to ensure Australia's safety. It was thought that the campaign will start in October 20th. On October 22nd, the Ampersandese troops, reinforced with remainders of former Australian Army, started the Papua New Guinea Campaign. Its primary target is to seize Port Moresby and other southern coastal cities. Currently, Daru has been captured, while troops are approaching other coastal cities. Once this is complete, the troops first conquer the peninsular in the southwest of mainland, and continue seizing entire Papua New Guinea. The Solomon Islands Campaign was planned with Australian Campaign and Papua New Guinea Campaign, but rescinded shortly after conquering vast majority of Australia. It was announced by the government that it will start the Solomon Islands Campaign once the army successfully conquers Bougainville. Geography Situated roughly between the Equator and Tropic of Capricorn, Ampersand stretches from the Great Sandy Desert to the rainforest of Papua New Guinea. To the west is the Indian Ocean, and Pacific Ocean surrounds Ampersand's northern and eastern coast Governance The Ampersandese government follows democracy since its start. It focuses on internal growth than war & conflict. Usually neutral in foreign affairs. When there is an conflict, it tries hard to avoid bloodshed and uses every possible diplomatic chances to solve conflict. The type of the government is a semi-presidential system, where both the president and the prime minister exists. Since successful conquer of Australia, it has introduced some degree of federal government. On November 11th, 2012, the government of Ampersand formally declared that Ampersand is a federation. Legislature The legislature is Ampersandese government is represented by the parliament. Foundation Before Greene's Augmentation occured, Ampersand used "bicameral" parliament. Although there were two separate bodies of parliament, neither had superiority over another. One of them was the Chamber of Internal Affairs, which concerned about domestic events and the Prime Minister. Another was the Chamber of Foreign Affairs, which concerned about foreign relations and the President. Economy and Military were allowed to be discussed by any of the two. Also the members of Chamber of Internal Affairs had power to elect and impeach Prime Minister while those of Foreign Affairs had same power to elect and impeach President. The voting method for all parliamentary, prime ministerial, and presidential elections was Winner Takes All/Plurality. Greene's Augmentation Although the the issues with legislature was settled, Prime Minister Greene felt that there should be a true bicameral parliament with most democratic voting method. First, he was integrated both Chamber of Internal Affairs and Chamber of Foreign Affairs to form Lower House of Ampersand, while also creating the Upper House to balance it out. However, the members of Chamber of Internal & Foreign Affairs have their term until February 15th. Next, he changed the election methods. For the Lower House, it uses mixed member proportional representation (MMP), where each get 2 votes. One will be for constituency representative (tactical), and another for party (favorite). This way, the voter can cast votes without their favorite party underrepresented. This will consequently bring political diversity and forbidding of gerrymandering. This is also applied to the Upper House. For the Prime Ministerial and Presidential election, it is a direct voting with instant-runoff. This method will prevent split votes and ensure there is a winning candidate. Parliamentary Election Every 3 months there will be parliamentary election. In this election, civilians can vote for both chambers. However, it is only limited to whole chamber of internal affairs and 12 seats of foreign affairs. Executive The executive in Ampersandese government is represented by the president and the prime minister. Under the president and the prime minister, there are ministers and governors who execute orders from the president and/or prime minister and other smaller orders. President President of Ampersand can execute any orders about foreign affairs. The president can elect 6 members of chamber of foreign affairs. He/she can be elected/impeached by the members of chamber of foreign affairs.The president has rights to intervene in ministries of Economy, Defense, and Foreign Affairs. Prime Minister Prime Minister of Ampersand can execute any orders about internal affairs. The prime minster of ampersand can be elected/impeached by members chamber of internal affairs. Commander in Chief Commander in Chief can execute any orders about internal affairs. The Commander in Chief will be chosen by Prime Minister and President. He has rights to intevene in Department of Defense and Department of Science. Currently the seat of Commander in Chief is abolished and the duties of it has been added to that of Prime Minister and President. Departments The president, prime minister, and commander in chief have rights to give orders to the departments. Here are the list of departments. *Department of Internal Affairs *Department of Foreign Affairs *Department of Defense *Department of Economy *Department of Education & Health :The Department of Education manages the development and management of schools, libraries, hospitals, and any hygiene measurements. It currently has project to build proper school system. *Department of Transportation *Department of Science *Department of Transportation :The Department of Transportation manages the development and management of means of transportation. It currently has a project to improve the only airport in Christmas Island. *Department of Environment Judiciary The Judiciary in Ampersandese government is represented by supreme court and regional courts. They will interpret the laws, and use it to solve any conflicts. Supreme Court The Supreme Court, located in the capital of Ampersand, The Settlement, acts as the place of final decisions (3rd decisions). Regional Court The regional courts are courts that often gives first decision and second decision about any case. There are one per region, and if needed, more courts can be built. Ideologies The government of Ampersand follows semi-minarchism. Seminarchism, an idea proposed by Compassmaker, is a political ideology that limits the government's intervention in economy, and only allows a state to exist for protection of its citizens from agression, theft, breach of contract, and fraud. The government's only legit institutions are military, police, and courts. It also allows fire department, social securities, prison, executive and legislative branch as legit part of the government. For economy, the government can only intervene in if an industry is controlled by sole company, an organization, or a person. It can also suggest/recommend/encourage companies to cooperate with government when in state of emergency, such as war. Constitution The constitution of Ampersand is currently being written by Compassmaker, Hershel Greene, Milburn Pennybags, Edgar Mallory, Norville Rogers, Horatio Jones, and Theodore Carl. It is expected that the constitution will be shown to public in late December. It also shows strong similarities to that of Cyprus. Parties The Ampersandese government allows freedom of parties. And there are some 10 parties in Ampersand as of July 30, 2012. Here are the list of the parties in Ampersand. *Socialist Party of Ampersand *Liberal Party of Ampersand *Democratic Party of Ampersand *Republican Party of Ampersand *Conservative Party of Ampersand Foreign Relations Ampersand has maintained small diplomatic relations with other countries, and there are currently trades going on with a few countries. Sometimes it does tech deals. Indonesia, Ampersand's closest neighbor, remained its largest trading and political partner, both countries had had their embassies before Indonesia fell into state of anarchy. Australia had had not made embassies, but had had formal relations with Ampersand. There is very little recognition except for Hispanic Republic and 3DS fans. Hispanic Republic: September 26, 2012 – Present The Hispanic Republic has recognized legitimacy of Ampersand's expansion. It also have trades with Ampersand. Soon, an embassy will be built in the capital city of The Settlement. : February 2, 2012 - Present Vietnam has been Ampersand's longest friend and has been collaborating with each other long before formally recognition. Embassies have been built in both countries, and Vietnam is the largest export partner for Ampersand. : September 24, 2012 – Present USA has been remaining largely positive of Ampersand, and it considers Ampersand as the only and legitimate successor state of Australia. Trades are somewhat large, but not many US citizens know about Ampersand. : September 24, 2012 – Present Although EU accepts that Ampersand as a country, Ampersand view European Union not as a single country, but a group of country. It has currently made ties with France, the Netherlands, Poland, and Sweden, and it is negotiating with United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Belgium, Bulgaria, Portugal, and Spain. : September 25, 2012 – Present Russia and Ampersand have a formal relationship, but there isn't much trade going on. There is no conflict, but both have no interest in each other. : NO RELATIONS There is no formal recognition of each other in between India and Ampersand. Very few trades are going, and India has declared Ampersand as potentially dangerous, but has not taken any hostile actions further from it. : NO RELATIONS There is no formal recognition of each other in between China and Ampersand. No trades are going due to China's trade embargo. There is no war going between Ampersand and China, but China avoids any kinds of contact with Ampersand for unknown reason. Military The Ampersandese military is mainly for defense and safety net for citizens in Ampersand. However the government is willing to deploy soldiers when its allies call. Soldiers Soldiers are within 15% - 30% of total population. Their sole duty is to protect civilians & allies. Tanks Tanks are also part of the Ampersandese military. They are for the back-up in case if there is more problems than the soldiers can handle. Deployment Some soldiers and tanks are deployed overseas to handle any chance of war in case Ampersand is called for help. Economy Export Ampersand's main export is Fish and Water. However, the actual main export is phosphate, which is used for agriculture and industry. Other exports are fruits and flowers from local orchids, and other agricultural produces. Import Due to its weak export, the government imports many goods, such as electronics, and luxuries. Currency Ampersand's currency is Ampersandese Shilling. A shilling is divided into 100 cents. The official set of legal tenders are 1 cent, 2 cents, 5 cents, 10 cents, 25 cents, 50 cents, 1 shilling, 5 shillings, 10 shillings, 50 shillings, 100 shillings, 500 shillings, and 1,000 shillings. However, the full set also divides a cent to 10 clips. There are 1, 2, 5 clips, but is not used in ordinary uses, and is only for commemorative uses. Transportation As Christmas Island remain isolated from anywhere, the main transport to get to the island is airplane and ship. Cars are only possible to travel to Christmas Island if when it is on the ship. Airport Christmas Island Airport is the only and international airport in Ampersand. The runway of the airport is 6,900 ft (2,103 m). It is made of asphalt, and the direction of the runway is 18/36 (heading south and north for each). Destinations *Perth, Australia (4 per week) *Cocos Islands, Australia (2 per week) *Kuala Lumper, Malaysia (Weekly, Chartered) *Jakarta, Indonesia (4 per week) Seaport The seaport are located in the Flying Fish Cove at the north of Christmas Island, and Norris Point at east. Roads Road connection remains good around the island, however it will require a 4 wheel drive vehicle to go deep into the rain forest or to reach remote beaches. There are taxi services. Railroads A 18 km long standard gauge railroad connects The Settlement to the phosphate mines down south. Communications Tourism Tourism in Ampersand remains relatively small, probably due to its small size and the location. However, there is a casino (government owned) and a golf course (private) that is open in the weekends. Also, most water sports are available to both locals and tourists. Sometimes, people can visit the Christmas Island National Park, or the phosphate mines. Christmas Island Red Crab Though the tourism may seem small in Ampersand, during the migrations season of red craps, the tourism reaches its peak. Demography Citizens The Ampersandi citizens are primarily of Pacific Islanders (83%). However, there are some people besides Pacific Islanders for asylum, notably Chinese (6%), Australian (4%), and Indonesian (3%). Refugees The Ampersandese government will accept any person seeking for asylum for 6 months. If the person's home country is not in war, the person will be given two choices: either to get Ampersandese nationality, or to return to his/her country. If his/her country is in war, the person will be given an permanent residency that lasts until the war ends. When the war ends, him/her will be given the same choice. Languages The government has set that English is the only official language, but the constitution that is yet to finish has stated that the official language shall be English, Malay (Indonesian), and Chinese. In order to be in official, one requires to be able to speak English and to also speak Malay or Chinese. Religion Any beliefs are allowed to practice and spread to another. The main religion is Catholic (34%), Buddhism (23%), and Islam (18%). There are few Jewish and Hindus that make up the remaining. Culture Art Architecture Cuisine Holidays Regular Holidays #January 1 - New Year's Day #January 26 - Australia Day #February 14 - Valentines Day #April 1 - April Fools Day #April 18 - Independence Day #April 22 - Earth Day #May 1 - Labor Day #May 15 - Day of Families #June 1 - Children's Day #June 2 - Mother's Day #June 3 - Father's Day #June 6 - Christmas Island Day #June 21 - Winter Solstice #October 15 - Teacher's Day #October 31 - Halloween #December 24 ~ 27 - Christmas Break ##December 24 - Christmas Eve ##December 25 - Christmas Day ##December 26 - Second Christmas Day (or St Stephen's Day) ##December 27 - Boxing Day #December 31 - New Year's Eve Irregular Holidays #Chinese New Year #Easter #Eid Literature Music Sports In Ampersand, swimming is the most popular sport. Other popular sports include fishing, biking, and badminton. The government of Ampersand is strongly encouraging people to play lacrosse. Though the government lacks budget to build a stadium, it is importing equipment and is distributing to people for almost free - 1.99 shilling per set. There are future plans to build a stadium for Ampersandese citizens - and foreigners. Football, precisely Rugby Football, is also another sports that government do encourage people to do. And the government holds a monthly rugby competition. Category:Nations of Oceania Category:Axis Sphere Category:Good Nation Pages